On Friday, March 21, the qualifiers for the final phase of the 2026 World Cup will begin.

In this new FIFA tournament, 54 national teams will compete. Through a two-phase process starting this Friday and concluding in March 2026, 16 European national teams will secure their spots in the final phase of the 2026 World Cup, which will be held in three countries: the USA, Canada, and Mexico.

The 54 European national teams have been divided into twelve qualifying groups.

The teams that finish in first place in their groups will qualify directly for the World Cup. The twelve second-placed teams will compete in play-off matches in March 2026, with four additional teams earning qualification through this process.

The first match of the new tournament will be Cyprus vs. San Marino at 19:00 at AEK Arena this coming Friday.

Cyprus is in Group H, alongside Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Romania, and San Marino.

Cyprus' schedule in the tournament:

• March 21, 2025: Cyprus vs. San Marino (19:00)
• March 24, 2025: Bosnia and Herzegovina vs. Cyprus (21:45)
• June 10, 2025: Romania vs. Cyprus (21:45)
• September 6, 2025: Austria vs. Cyprus (21:45)
• September 9, 2025: Cyprus vs. Romania (21:45)
• October 9, 2025: Cyprus vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina (21:45)
• October 12, 2025: San Marino vs. Cyprus (16:00)
• November 15, 2025: Cyprus vs. Austria (19:00)

All Qualifying Groups (some groups will be finalized after the UEFA Nations League First Division play-offs in the coming days):

• Group A: Winner of Germany/Italy, Slovakia, Northern Ireland, Luxembourg
• Group B: Switzerland, Sweden, Slovenia, Kosovo
• Group C: Loser of Portugal/Denmark, Greece, Scotland, Belarus
• Group D: Winner of France/Croatia, Ukraine, Iceland, Azerbaijan
• Group E: Winner of Spain/Netherlands, Turkey, Georgia, Bulgaria
• Group F: Winner of Portugal/Denmark, Hungary, Ireland, Armenia
• Group G: Loser of Spain/Netherlands, Poland, Finland, Lithuania, Malta
• Group H: Austria, Romania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus, San Marino
• Group I: Loser of Germany/Italy, Norway, Israel, Estonia, Moldova
• Group J: Belgium, Wales, North Macedonia, Kazakhstan, Liechtenstein
• Group K: England, Serbia, Albania, Latvia, Andorra
• Group L: Loser of France/Croatia, Czechia, Montenegro, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar